Thursday, May 12, 2005

IndyMedia roundup

After suffering for 7 days in critical condition from severe head trauma and contusions in his body, Nicolas David Neira Alvares died at age 15. He was brutally beaten by 8 Bogota, Columbia pigz and left to die.This Mayday, like many others around the world, workers from many social movements gathered in Bogota, Columbia to march for worker's rights and to commemorate the events of 1886 in Chicago. According to accounts there was music and dancing and folks were in a non-violent mood. As the march reached the downtown area, pigz suddenly opened fire with tear gas and rubber bullets. Exploiting the chaos that ensued the pigz(faces concealed) charged into the crowd brutally beating people. In this moment 8 pigz singled out a 15 yr old male anarchist and beat him into unconsciousness. Many comrades bravely attempted to interfere to rescue him. It is unclear how long it was before they were successful. Alvares was then taken to the Salud Coop Hospital where he suffered for 7 days until his death. Apparently the trauma was so extensive that they were unable to operate to save him.

In Haiti's overcrowded prisons the constitutional Prime Minister Yvon Neptune lies on his deathbed as hundreds of other political prisoners languish behind bars without charges.Neptune's sacrifice has cast a light into the shadows of Haiti's prisons and thousands of people around the world have felt compelled to speak out, unable to forget the injustices illuminated by Neptune's courageous and tragic hunger strike.Neptune's case is a microcosm of a much larger problem that has plagued Haiti since the overthrow of the democratically elected government in February 2004. Since that time Haiti's justice system has been hijacked by an interim government intent on silencing dissent and there is no semblance of due process for those identified as Aristide supporters.

As an immigrant, Araceli has a hard time feeling like she belongs. She fled social unrest in Guatemala with her family when she was only five years old, speaks English better than Spanish, but has been forced to live in the fringes of society because she is considered illegal. "I've been here for sixteen years. I consider myself an American," she said.The first time she found out about her status was when she tried to apply for college and was told the benefit of a higher education did not apply to her. One year after graduating from high school with a 3.5 GPA and unable to work legally in this country, she feels uneasy about her future. "Put your self in my shoes. I want an education and a career," she said.

While visiting Jerusalem and the West Bank in late March and early April, my husband and I met Mordechai Vanunu who is under house arrest at the St. George's Guest House where we were staying. Mordechai Vanunu, was an Israeli nuclear technician at the Dimona nuclear "research center" in the Negev Desert near his home at Beersheba. He worked there during the 1970's and early 80's. The facility harbored an underground plutonium separation plant operated in strictest secrecy. Vanunu took photographs of the facility and left the country. Captured by Israeli agents on September 30, 1986, Vanunu spent more than 11 1/2 years in solitary confinement completing his entire 18-year sentence in Israel's Ashkelon Prison on April 21, 2004.

About Me

We do not open attachments. Stop e-mailing them. Threats and abusive e-mail are not covered by any privacy rule. This isn't to the reporters at a certain paper (keep 'em coming, they are funny). This is for the likes of failed comics who think they can threaten via e-mails and then whine, "E-mails are supposed to be private." E-mail threats will be turned over to the FBI and they will be noted here with the names and anything I feel like quoting.
This also applies to anyone writing to complain about a friend of mine. That's not why the public account exists.